Room
by AnnaKendrick47
Summary: Beca Mitchell lives in a small shed she calls Room with her 5-year-old son, Jack, and their captor, trying to find a way to escape. Bechloe endgame.
1. Welcome to Room!

**Hello there! This is a new story I've thought about. The beginning will be very similar to the book/movie, Room, but I promise I'll give my twist because this will be a Bechloe story ;)**

* * *

 **Chapter One - Welcome to Room!**

 _Once upon a time, before I came, you cried and cried and watched TV all day. Until you were like a zombie. But then I zoomed down from Heaven, through Skylight into Room. And I was kicking you from the inside. BOOM! BOOM! And then I shot out onto Rug with my eyes wide open and you cutted the cord and said, "Hello Jack!"._

5-year-old Jack opened his eyes and could see his Ma lying next to him. He quickly sat up, remembering today's date, and started shaking his mother awake.

"Ma! Wake up, I'm 5!" he said excitedly.

The short brunette next to him lazily opened her eyes and smiled at her son before scooping him in her arms in a bear hug.

"I'm so old now!" the little boy said excitedly.

"You are! You're such a big boy now!" the brunette woman said.

"Was I a negative number?" the boy whispered when his Ma let him go.

"What?"

"Up in Heaven. Was I –3 then –2 —,"

"— No, the numbers only started counting when you zoomed down." the brunette offered her son a lazy smile.

The brunette stood up to turn on the thermostat and stretched a bit before turning back to her son.

"So, Mr. 5 Years Old, wanna get your present now or after breakfast?" the brunette crossed her arms over her chest, waiting until the air got warm.

Jack thought, but grinned at the thought of being called Mr. 5 Years Old.

"Call me that again." Jack asked.

"Mr. 5 Years Old." the brunette repeated and the little boy giggled.

"So now I'm 5, I can decide. I choose to see my present now!" Jack said.

"Okay, close your eyes." the brunette said and the boy obeyed.

The brunette grabbed a folded piece of paper and sat in front of her son.

"And... open your eyes!" she said, placing the paper on his lap.

Jack opened his eyes and opened the piece of paper. It was like looking in a mirror, except his eyes were closed and it was on paper.

"Did you do that?" he asked his Ma.

"Yeah."

"When?" Jack frowned.

"The last couple nights, when you were asleep. I turned Lamp on so I could see your little face." she explained and Jack giggled before looking down at the drawing and frowning. "What is it, Jack? Didn't you like it?"

"I don't like it when you're on the same time I'm off." Jack explained.

"Well if you were on, it wouldn't have been a surprise now, would it, little dude?" she asked him.

"But I only like surprises that I know about." Jack said and the brunette laughed.

"Come on, little dude, let's have breakfast." The brunette woman stood up and walked a few steps over to the kitchen, where she grabbed the cereal box and the milk.

Mother and son sat down to eat breakfast and, for the most part, it was all okay. The brunette woman joked around with her son as they ate breakfast. And for the little boy, it was just that: simple, easy.

"Hey little dude, do you know what we're gonna do today?"

"What?"

"You and I are going to bake a birthday cake." the brunette woman looked at her son as his smile grew bigger.

"A birthday cake?!" she nodded. "Like on TV?"

"No, this one's real." Ma said. "But you're gonna have to help me."

"I'm a great helper." Jack said proudly.

"Yes you are and now you're 5, you can help me with everything." the woman said and the little boy smiled.

oO0Oo

For 7 years, Beca Mitchell tried making life in that stupid small shed she had to call a room good. It was horrible at first, she tried many ways to escape, even killing herself but the old man her and her son Jack called Old Nick wasn't happy about it.

When Jack came, Beca swore to herself she'd make life better for that boy and she'd try to see the good in every situation. But of course, she was getting more and more exhausted as the days went by. Every day felt like an eternity. But now she wasn't living for herself, she was living for Jack.

"Aaaaand ta dah!" Beca said as she placed the birthday cake in front of her son.

Jack opened his eyes but his smile disappeared.

"What's the matter?" Beca asked.

"Where are the candles?" he asked.

"Oh... we don't have any candles." Beca explained.

"But you said this was a real birthday cake! That means candles on fire!" Jack said.

"It's okay without the candles, Jack." Beca said. "Come on, let's try it."

"No." Jack said.

"Come on, Jack, just a bite."

"I said no!" Jack screamed.

It was moments like these that Beca had to close her eyes and take a deep breath so she wouldn't lose her shit. She had been inside the same damn room for 7 fucking years. Her son sure made things a lot brighter but when he got mad, she wanted to just cry.

"Come here." Beca sighed and held Jack close. "Do you wanna try a bite?"

"Okay." Jack said quietly.

Beca sighed again and stepped back, cutting a piece of the cake with a knife.

Since they couldn't go out or see other people, Beca had thought of ways to get Jack to do a least some exercise. It consisted of stretching around the room and running around. Jack loved it, he ran and ran like an Olympic runner.

After running, Beca and Jack watched TV. Mostly Dora and SpongeBob since those were Jack's favorites.

"When I grow up, I'm gonna be Jack the Giant! I'm gonna jump between the planets in outer space with my dog Lucky!" he said as he jumped on the bed.

"Are you gonna take me with you?" Beca asked.

"Only if you grow up too, Ma." Jack said and Beca laughed. "Then I can teach you how to jump from Room to Mars and to Jupiter."

"I can't wait." Beca smiled.

After TV, they had to take a bath and wash the clothes. Beca invented a game for that too, they would throw the wet clothes around and see how many points they would get.

Jack's long hair wasn't washed often, since they didn't have any shampoo or conditioner, but Beca made a point of brushing their hair before bed.

Beca held her son close as she told a story and he nursed from her breast. Even though she should've stopped breastfeeding a long time ago, she still produced milk and she didn't want to ask her captor for medication for it.

Beca peeked and saw her son was asleep, so she gently placed him in the wardrobe, but before she could close the doors, Jack opened his eyes.

"Ma, can you sing for me?" he asked sleepily.

Beca smiled and cupped his tiny cheek.

 _"One evening when the sun went down_  
 _And the jungle fire was burning_  
 _Down the tracks came a hobo hiking_  
 _And he said, "Boys, I'm not turning_  
 _I'm headed for a land that's far away_  
 _Beside the Crystal Fountain_  
 _Oh come with me, go and see_  
 _The Big Rock Candy Mountain_

 _In the Big Rock Candy Mountain_  
 _There's a land that's clear and bright"_

Beca slowly stopped singing when she saw her son had drifted off to sleep once again. She smiled before closing the doors.

It wasn't long before that that _he_ showed up.

Beca didn't know his real name. Jack saw on TV once a character that was mysterious, quiet, had glasses and a beard and his name was Old Nick, so they called their captor Old Nick.

Old Nick only came at night. He would bring food, clothes if they were needed, but he demanded something in return. Something Beca learned a long time ago not to say no to. Something that got her Jack.

So every night, Beca waited for Old Nick to leave before she brought Jack back into bed with her. But she never slept after that. Her eyes would be wide awake and she would cry all night. Sometimes, she slept for a couple hours and if she was lucky, she'd sleep until Jack woke up.

All Beca Mitchell knew, was that she was tired of it all. She was tired of having to lie there as Old Nick had his way with her, she was tired of hiding her son in the closet so Old Nick wouldn't lay a finger on him.

But Beca Mitchell was fucking tired.


	2. Outer Space

**Chapter Two - Outer Space**

 _There's Room, then Outer Space with all the TV panets. Then Heaven. Plant is real but not trees. Spider is real, I've seen her twice. And one time the mosquito that was sucking my blood, like a vampire. Ma gave me a really big pill. That was the only time my blood got out of me. But squirrels and dogs are just TV. Except Lucky. He's my dog that will come someday._

 _Monsters are too big to be real, and the sea. And the TV persons are flat and made of colors. But me and you are real. Old Nick.. I don't know if **he's** real. Maybe half._

Ma turned on the tub and waited as it filled. Jack was playing with Labyrinth quietly as he waited as well.

Jack and his Ma had built Labyrinth when the boy was 2. It was made of toilet paper rolls and tape. They made it so it took a lot of turns.

Jack loved playing with Bouncy Ball in Labyrinth. He would put the ball inside and try to make it find all the other way out.

"Ma, how old are you turning on your birthday?"

"Twenty-eight."

"Wow!" Jack said. "Is Old Nick gonna bring candles for Sunday Treat?"

Ma didn't seem so happy about that, but she didn't answer. Instead, she offered her son a small smile.

"Tub is full, Jack the Giant." she said.

Jack jumped up and down as Ma helped him get his clothes off.

"After our bath, we're gonna eat lunch." Ma announced.

 _Ma lets us have cereal for breakfast and for lunch and for dinner. When I was zero and one year old, Ma would crunch and chew my food for me. But now I have all my twenty teeth and I can chew everything._

"Ma, do we still have birthday cake?" Jack asked hopeful.

"I don't know, I think Old Nick ate the last bite." Ma said.

Jack sighed and looked down.

"Can I have a sandwich, please?" Jack asked.

The brunette woman smiled and nodded before she walked over to the mini fridge to grab the ingredients for their sandwiches.

After lunch, Jack read more of his book, _Alice In Wonderland_ , his favorite. His Ma had taught him how to read when he was younger so now he read a lot easier. He'd read the book many times before but he loved reading it over and over.

When night came, Jack went to Wardrobe but, like always, he was wide awake. He just looked around and played in there while he waited to fall asleep. He tried to listen and noticed that his Ma and Old Nick seemed to have fallen asleep, so the little boy slowly slowly opened the door and peeked outside. Room was dark, Lamp was off so Ma and Old Nick were sleeping.

Jack carefully stepped out of Wardrobe and saw Old Nick's jacket hanging from Chair Number 1. He made his way over and gently touched the jacket, he didn't know what he was looking for, maybe a proof of what kind of magic the man used to get their food.

Jack jumped when he heard Old Nick cough, so he quietly walked closer to him and looked at his face, studying it quietly.

Old Nick slowly opened his eyes and blinked, sleepily.

 _So he **is** real!_ , Jack thought.

"Hey sonny." He said in a whisper.

Ma jumped over Old Nick, trying to reach Jack, which made the boy jump.

"Don't touch him!" She screamed.

Old Nick quickly sat up, angrily. Jack screamed and went back into Wardrobe, covering his eyes, going into a fetal position.

"Quit the fucking noise! Quit the noise!" Old Nick stood over Ma, putting almost all his weight on her neck, so he knew she couldn't breathe.

The noises Ma was making were terrifying, and Jack knew Old Nick was making her dead and it was because of him.

"Do you wanna breathe?" Old Nick asked. Ma made a noise. "Then quit the fucking noise."

Old Nick finally let go of her and sat on the edge, grabbing his boots.

"Don't touch him." Ma held her neck, her voice was hoarse and thick.

"You're pretty hysterical, did you know that?" he asked with a bitter tone.

"I can be quiet." Ma said, still holding her neck. "As long as you don't touch him. That's all I've ever asked you."

"Yeah well don't _you_ forget where you got him." Old Nick said as he walked over to the door.

As Old Nick walked out, Ma turned Lamp back on and put it back on the table.

"Jack? Jack!" She called.

Jack came out crying hard, straight into his Ma's arms.

"I'm sorry I came out of Wardrobe! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" He cried as Ma rocked him back and forth. "I won't do it again, I promise!"

oO0Oo

Unsurprisingly, Beca went to bed crying that night. Old Nick almost took two things from her today; her life and her son, which were worth about the same.

Jack fell asleep crying too, but after that he was okay. Beca's neck hurt a lot and she knew it'd form a bruise.

Damn.

It was nights like these that she thought about everyone else outside.

Her family, her friends… Oh her friends. One in particular. One she missed more than the others. One that been with her when Old Nick abducted her. One she often thought she'd never see again.

oO0Oo

Jack woke up the next morning before his Ma, which wasn't rare. He took a deep breath but saw an unfamiliar smoke coming from his nose. He frowned and blew air with his mouth, seeing the same smoke coming out. Which only meant one thing.

"Ma! I'm a dragon!" He said excitedly as he turned to look at his Ma. "I'm a dragon!"

Beca frowned when she saw the white smoke coming out when Jack blew hot air. She checked the heat and it was off. The lamp was off, the kitchen light was off too.

"He cut the power." She said and immediately got out of bed. She tried opening the door but it wouldn't budge. There wasn't any space between the door and the frame so she couldn't open it. Her nail went the wrong way one moment and she screamed in frustration and pain, sitting on the floor by the door, holding her finger close.

"Ma! Ma!" Jack said, hurrying to his Ma's side.

"Door is still closed." She said, wiping her tears.

"That's because the aliens are pushing it." Jack said.

"Will we ever win, Jack?" Beca asked.

"Yeah!" Jack said. "Once I'm Jack the Giant! Then the aliens won't stand a chance!"

Beca chuckled. She grabbed her son from the bed and hugged him tight. He was her light at the end of the tunnel, the reason she was still living. She _had_ to get him out, she would go crazy if she didn't.


	3. Like Alice

**Chapter Three - Like Alice**

Jack and Ma were putting the remains of the egg shells on Eggsnake, so she would be even longer. Even though the power was cut and they had no TV, they still found things to do.

"Why did he tell you not to forget where you got me?" Jack asked and he didn't notice his Ma stiffening.

"Can you give me a minute?" Ma asked and Jack sighed.

Jack counted in his head. From one to sixty before he turned to Ma.

"Why did he tell you not to forget where you got me? Wasn't it from Heaven?"

Ma sighed again as she stuck the needle through the egg shell.

"He meant.. who you belong to." she said quietly.

"I belong to you." Jack said, confusedly.

Ma gave him a small smile.

"Yeah." Ma said.

"But why did he tell you not to forget?" Jack insisted.

"You see, Old Nick misunderstands everything. He thinks you belong to him." Ma explained.

"He's stupid." Jack said.

"Yeah. Dumbo."

"Stupid!"

"Idiot!"

Ma and Jack laughed as they came up with more names to call Old Nick.

"Come on, little dude. Let's do the dishes." Ma patted her son's knee and stood up. Jack sighed, putting Eggsnake aside and following his Ma to the kitchen.

"The water is cold." Jack commented as he helped Ma. "When is the power gonna be uncut?"

Ma chuckled.

"I don't know, sorry." she said.

"But what if Room gets colder and colder?" Jack asked worriedly.

"Nah, that can't happen. We'll be in April soon, it's not gonna be so cold outside." Ma said.

Jack didn't say anything after that, he just helped Ma wash the dishes, which weren't many. There weren't many food options when the power was cut.

"Done!" Jack said proudly after the dishes were all clean and dry.

Ma smiled and they sat on the bed, under the covers to get warmer. The brunette sighed and hugged Jack tight.

"I'm sorry, Jack." she said.

"Why are you sorry?" Jack asked with a frown.

"It was my fault. I made him angry, I hadn't done that in years. He doesn't like it when I scream." she said and Jack knew her eyes were filling up with tears. "Now he wants to punish us."

"How is he gonna punish us?" Jack asked, even more worried and Ma pulled apart.

"He already is. Cutting the power so we're cold and our food is getting bad." Ma said.

"Oh that's good." Jack said and Ma chuckled.

"Why is it good?"

"I thought he was gonna put me in Room number 2." Jack said.

"You're amazing." Ma said with a chuckle.

"Why am I amazing?" Jack asked.

"Because you have an amazing Ma." Ma winked.

Jack laughed.

"Come on, Jack. It's getting close to bedtime, let's go to bed." Ma said.

"We didn't brush our teeth." Jack reminded her.

"Oh yeah." Ma groaned. "Come on, let's brush our teeth so they don't go bad!"

Jack giggled and raced his Ma to the bathroom. He obviously won.

oO0Oo

Jack woke up the next morning first, but it was still really cold, even colder now. He turned to Beca with a sigh and shook her awake and she yawned. He knew this meant she was awake all night.

"Ma, what's Chloe?" he asked.

Beca visibly stiffened and turned to him, with a look that meant sadness, pain, hurt, just by the mention of that name.

"What?" she asked.

"You said 'Chloe' a lot at night." Jack said.

"Oh. Chloe's.. Chloe is a name. Like Jack and Beca." Beca explained, trying not to show how hurt she was at the mention of Chloe.

"Who's Chloe?" Jack asked.

"She was my friend." Beca said, praying he wouldn't ask any more questions.

Beca walked out of the bed to the kitchen and she grabbed the last apple with a sigh. She was so tired of this.

"Ma, can I have that apple?" Jack asked.

"Of course, take it." Beca washed the apple and gave it to her son. She looked in the fridge and found vegetables like broccoli and carrots but they were certainly going bad. She didn't like the idea but she grabbed some to eat. She was starving.

"Why is he still punishing us?" Jack asked before sitting on the bed, eating his apple.

"Because he thinks we belong to him because we're in Room." Beca explained.

"Why?" Jack asked.

Beca chuckled a little bit despite the bad taste of the vegetables.

"Well, he built Room." Beca said.

Jack accepted the answer and continued chewing on his apple while Beca ate her vegetables.

Beca just thought about it. She was so tired. The bruise on her neck seemed to get darker everyday. Yes, she was thankful that Old Nick wasn't coming every night, but then again, she needed him to bring food and to turn the power back on.

Beca looked at Jack's book, _Alice in Wonderland_ and an idea sparked in her head.

"Jack, can I tell you a story?" she asked.

"A real one?" he asked.

"A very real one." Beca smiled. "So, do you remember how Alice wasn't always in Wonderland?"

Jack gave his Ma a suspicious look.

"Yeah, she fell four thousand miles in the hole! But she didn't get hurt." he answered.

"Yeah, well I'm like Alice." Beca said.

"Naaah, Alice is a little girl with a huge head!" Jack said.

"Yeah, but like her, I'm from somewhere else. A long time ago, I was —,"

"— In Heaven!" Jack said.

Beca put her finger on his mouth so he'd be quiet.

"I came down from Heaven and I was a kid, just like you! I lived with my dad, my ma.."

"But _you're_ Ma!" Jack said, shaking his head.

"Yeah but I had mine. I called her mom. I still do." Beca said, tears starting to fill her eyes.

"Why are you pretending? I don't like it when you trick me." Jack frowned.

"I'm not tricking you." Beca said. "Anyways, you would call her 'grandma'."

Jack looked down at his half eaten apple and put it on the table, suddenly not that hungry.

"Did you grow inside her?"

"Yeah!" Beca said. "And I had a dad too, you would call him 'grandpa'.."

Jack pushed his apple aside.

"What's for lunch?" he asked, but Beca's face didn't change.

"Jack, I'm talking about your family." she said.

Jack frowned and shook his head, crossing his arms.

"Jack, just because you don't know them, doesn't mean they're not real!" Beca said. The boy didn't say anything, he just stared at her. "Anyway, I lived with my mom and my dad, in a house—,"

"— A house in TV?" Jack asked.

"No, Jack, a real house, in the world." Beca said. "But it.. It did look like a TV house. It was big, it had those big pillars in front of it, two floors, it had a big backyard and a hammock..."

"What's a hammock?" Jack asked.

Beca jumped to the bedside table and took out a pencil, desperate to try to represent to her son things that existed in the world outside, a world Jack didn't know of.

"This!" Beca said. She drew two trees, a hammock tied to both and a girl on the hammock.

"Who's that?" Jack asked.

"That's me! Swinging on the hammock!" Beca said and made the paper swing from side to side. "I had friends, I would go to the park with them and go on the swings.. Grandma and grandpa used to take me and my friends to the zoo, to the beach... I was their little girl."

"Naaah." Jack said.

Beca crumbled the piece of paper and threw it again, burying her head in her hands and finally allowing herself to cry in frustration.

"Don't cry, Ma." Jack said.

"I can't help it." Beca wiped her tears. "I wish I could describe all of this better for you. I miss it."

"You miss the hammock?" Jack looked puzzled.

"I miss being outside." Beca said. "I miss the world."

Jack frowned and tilted his head.

"Did you really live on TV?" Jack asked.

"No, I told you. All of this is real! It's all outside in the world! God, the world is so big, you can't even imagine!" Beca said. "And Room is just a stinky part of it!"

"Room is not stinky, only when you do a fart!" Jack said angrily.

Beca started crying again.

"Your farts are stinkier than mine! You're just trying to trick me and you better stop!" Jack continued.

Beca took a deep breath.

"Alright." she said. "Let's eat a sandwich."

"Why?" Jack frowned.

"Because you said you were hungry." Beca said.

"I'm not hungry." Jack said.

Beca looked at him with angry eyes.

"I am going to make you a sandwich and you're going to eat it." she said sternly and slowly. "Alright?"

Jack remained quiet as his mother made them peanut butter sandwich, which weren't anything special. Then the two got ready for bed after they shared the last apple.

"I know it's a lot for you to take in." Beca said.

Jack frowned in confusion but remained quiet. Was she talking about the sandwich? Or the apple?

"I wouldn't lie to you about this." Beca said. "I couldn't tell you before because you were too small to understand, I think that's why I've been lying to you at the time. But now you're 5 and I think you're capable of understanding."

Jack shook his head.

"What I'm doing now it's the opposite of lying. It's like I'm undoing the lie, I'm unlying." Beca said.

Jack remained quiet as he quietly tugged on Ma's shirt and she sighed before pulling up the shirt so he could nurse from her breasts.

It was quiet for a moment, Jack noticed his ma was looking at him as he switched breasts.

"Why don't you like living here?" he asked.

Beca pulled her shirt back down and sat up.

"I wasn't finished!" Jack said.

"Yes you were, you were talking." Beca said.

"Why don't you like living in Room with me?" Jack asked.

Beca sighed and hugged him tight.

"Jack." she said and there was a moment of silence. "I always like being with you."

"But you said Room was stinky." Jack said.

Beca sighed again.

"Yes, I'd rather be outside. But with you." Beca said.

"I like it here." Jack said.

"Okay." Beca sighed, deciding to not drag this any longer as she pulled apart.

"How did he build it?"

Beca knew who Jack was talking about.

"Well, actually it was just a garden shed. There was nothing inside, it was this 12 ft by 12 space. Then he added a soundproof skylight, a lot of isolation foam inside the walls, some lead because lead cancels out any sound. And finally a door with a security code. And he brags about his work." Beca said with a slight roll of eyes and a tired sigh.

Jack remained quiet as he turned on his stomach and looked at Skylight. He was thibking about all his Ma just said. It wasn't true, she was just tricking him, he was shre of that.

"Hey little buddy?" Beca asked as she sat up.

"Yeah?" Jack asked.

"Wanna hear a story?"

"A real one?!" Jack asked, his eyes brightening.

"A very real one, like the one I just told you." Beca said and Jack sighed but listened to her anyway. "So I was 21, I was in college. I was on a date with this girl named Chloe—,"

"— What's a date?" Jack cut her off to ask.

"Oh.. a date is something two people who like each other go on, so they can be boyfriends or girlfriends." Beca said.

"Did you wanna be Chloe's girlfriend?" Jack asked.

"More than anything, kid." Beca sighed, fighting the tears. "Anyway, Chloe and I were on our third date, it was a lunch date. We were going to rehearsal when this came came running towards us, desperate—,"

"— What guy?"

"Old Nick! It was Old Nick!" Beca said. "Anyway he came and said his dog was sick, he thought the dog was dying and he needed help. Chloe suspected him but I wanted to give a leap of faith."

"What was the dog's name?"

"What? Jack, there was no dog! That's my point! He was tricking me!" Beca said. "He only said that so I would go with him! So he put me in his truck and I was screaming so he punched me. And I blacked out. So he brought me to his garden shed. Room."

"I wanna hear a different story." Jack frowned.

"No, this is the story I'm telling you. The one thag happened." Beca said. "Anyway when I woke up, I realized he had given me a sleeping pill. And I was desperate."

"I don't like this story! You're lying! The Outside and Chloe don't exist!" Jack shouted.

"Hey!" Beca's eyes looked angry again. "Don't speak like that about Chloe, do you hear me? It's all true, Jack. It's all true."

Jack loosened his frown but he didn't say anything.

"Are dogs real?"

"Very real. There are different sizes of dogs." Beca said.

"What about cats? And trees? And squirrels?" Jack asked.

"Yeah, all real." Beca said.

Jack laid back down.

"When Old Nick comes back, I'm gonna kick him in the butt." Jack said.

Beca chuckled and laid down next to her son.

"You know, dude. I've tried to kick Old Nick in th butt. One time, I hid behind the door, I was holding the lid from the toilet tank, it was the heaviest thing in Room—,"

"— Bed is heavier." Jack said.

"Yeah but I couldn't lift Bed alone now could I?" Beca asked and Jack laughed. "Anyway, I failed. So he grabbed my wrist and twisted it, that's why it's sore now."

There was a moment of silence while Beca thought about it and Jack looked at her.

"But now, we have our chance! You and I, dude, can trick that bastard." Beca said.


	4. Tricks

**Chapter 4 - Tricks**

Beca turned off the stove and transferred the hot water from one pot to the other.

"I don't get it." Jack said from behind her.

"It's so you'll look more sick." Beca said.

"Why?" Jack asked.

"We need to do something about your hair." Beca grabbed the detergent and spread on his scalp, which made him do a disgusted face.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"It's so your hair will look greasy." Beca said. "So you'll look sick."

"Why?" Jack asked.

"So Old Nick will have to take you to the hospital, and there you can say 'help, I've been kidnapped!'" Beca said. "But you need to smell worse."

"Ew." Jack said.

"Go lay on the bed." Beca said and Jack did.

Beca put a cloth in the water before going over to Jack with the cloth and putting it on his forehead, but the boy let out a small cry.

"It's too hot, Ma!" he said, looking like he was gonna cry.

"I'm sorry, you need to feel sick." Beca said, hating that she had to do this to her little boy.

"But it's too hot." Jack said, crying already.

"Sorry, I'm sorry." Beca put the cloth away and put two fingers down her throat.

Jack looked confused when he saw something come from his Ma's mouth, something that smelled horrible, it was thick and it even had bites of the apple him and his Ma shared.

"Ewww, what are you doing?" he asked as she wiped her fingers on him.

"Sorry, you need to smell sick." Beca said before putting the cloth on his face again. "Sorry, Jack, I'm sorry."

"Stop!" Jack shouted.

"Sorry." Beca said, putting the cloth away.

"I don't wanna play anymore." Jack said. The smell and the cloth was too much.

"We're not playing, you need to do as I said." Beca said.

"You're mean."

"I have a reason."

Beca heard footsteps and put the pot and the cloth away before putting the covers over Jack.

The beeping came and, pretty soon, Old Nick was inside.

"You know the drill. Ew, what smells so bad?" he asked.

"Sorry, Jack's not well, he's leaking from top to bottom." Beca said.

"It must be a 24 hour bug." he said.

"Well, it's more like 30 hours now, he has goosebumps, he's burning.. He's not well." Beca said.

"Well, give him one of those pills for headaches." Old Nick said. "That might work."

"What do you think I've been doing all day? He just throws up, he can't even drink water." Beca said.

Old Nick sighed and stepped closer.

"Let me have a look."

"No."

"Come on, out of the way."

"I said no."

Old Nick pushed Beca out of the way and put his hand on Jack's forehead, who closed his eyes really tight.

"Gosh, he's burning." he said.

"I told you." Beca said.

"He needs stronger meds from the pharmacy." Old Nick said.

"What? He's barely five, he has a fever of God knows what, he's dehydrated!" Beca said.

"Shut up and let me think!" he said.

"He needs to go a hospital right now, that's what he needs." Beca said.

Old Nick grunted and Beca made a crying noise.

"If you don't bring him to a hospital he could.." Beca didn't finish the sentence.

"No way."

"I'm begging you."

"I said no way." he said.

"You can just say he's an illegal immigrant with no documents, he can't say a word, they can bring him back over as soon as he's hydrated again!" Beca said.

"I can't talk with you." he said.

"No! Please don't go! Please!"

Bam. Door was closed.

Beca sighed and wiped her tears, going to Jack's side and kissing his temple.

"Did I ruin the game?"

"No, you were a star."

"But I'm not going to the hospital with Old Nick." Jack said.

"I know. It's okay." Beca sighed.

"But you said!"

"I know, but that was Plan A. It was worth the shot. He was too scared." Beca said.

" _He_ was scared?" Jack asked.

"Scared that you'd talk to doctors, nurses and the police and put him in jail." Beca said. "Now to Plan B."

oO0Oo

Jack was lying on Rug, his Ma was over him, looking eager.

"So you'll have to very stiff, 'cause you'll play dead." Ma said.

"I'm scared." Jack said.

"I know, I'm scared too." Ma said, sitting down next to him. "But we gotta do this, we're so close."

Jack said nothing and let his Ma roll him again.

"Okay, now roll!" she said.

Jack did but got stuck in Rug.

"I can't, I'm stuck!" He screamed. "Ma help me!"

Ma hurried to his side and unrolled Rug.

"I gotta make it shorter." She said, folding Rug once more before Jack laid back down and she rolled him again. "Now! Roll, Jack! Roll!"

Jack did and managed to get out this time but he looked at his Ma and he was crying.

"I hate you!" He screamed.

Ma lied down with him and hugged him. She knew he didn't mean it, he was just tired. But she was exhausted too. Exhausted of living in Room.

"Come on, let's do this." She said. She rolled him again and heard footsteps. "I'm sorry Jack, I'm sorry."

Old Nick came in, Jack could hear him.

"What the hell are you doing?" He asked.

"He got worse in the night." Ma was crying. "He didn't wake up."

"Oh you poor thing." He said.

"You killed my baby." She said.

"Alright, take it easy." He said. "Let me take a look."

"Don't touch him!" She slapped his hand away. "You gotta take him away, I can't bare it!"

"Alright."

"Bury him somewhere nice. With trees." He said.

"Okay." He said quietly. "Let me take him."

"Be gentle, please be gentle!" Ma pleaded.

Jack was being picked up and he looked up through the hole and saw his Ma looking at him with a desperate look.

Then Jack was put down. He didn't see anything he recognized but he was soon picked up again and soon put somewhere hard. He heard a slamming noise and soon he started shaking. That's when he knew Old Nick was driving so it was time for him to roll.

And Jack did. He rolled and managed to wiggle out. The light was too much but his eyes widened as he watched trees, actual trees above him. Trees and clouds. All sorts of stuffs. It was all real! It wasn't TV!

He went back to the plan and sat up, looking around. He was supposed to get out when the truck slowed down. He was looking around all the time and, when Old Nick stopped, he tried getting out but he was thrown back into the truck when Old Nick began driving again, but soon stopped.

Jack hurried to get out but he didn't expect it to hurt when he hit the ground. He got up and started running, but he ran into a person. An actual real live person.

"Oh I'm sorry sweetheart!" The man said.

Jack crawled into a ball, hearing a dog barking. A real live dog.

"Is your little girl okay?" The man asked.

Old Nick picked him up and started taking him to the truck.

"Help me!" Jack found his voice and he saw the man with the dog was following them. "Help me!"

Old Nick dropped him to the ground and went back to his truck. Jack crawled back into a ball and heard the man asking him questions but he was cold and scared.

It wasn't long before another voice joined. A female voice. That wasn't his Ma.

"We'll take it from here, thanks." The new voice said. "Come here, sweetie. I'm officer Parker, can you tell me your name?"

Jack knew the woman was talking to him. She picked him up and took him to a car. A real life car, blue and white. The woman put a blanket on him and closed the door. He was looking down.

"Can you tell me your name, sweetie?" she asked him.

"Jack." Jack said in a whisper.

"Can you tell me how old you are?"

"I'm five." Jack said.

"Five? That's great!" Officer Parker said. "Can you tell me where do you life?"

"Why don't we call Child Services?" a man who was on the front seat spoke.

"Do you have a mom, Jack?" Officer Parker said.

Jack remembered Ma. He missed her.

"Ma."

"Okay good, does she have another name?" Officer Parker asked.

"I can't remember." Jack said. He tried to remember Ma's name. It started with a B.

"Where's Ma right now?" Officer Parker asked.

"Room."

"What room, Jack? Where's this room?" Officer Parker asked and Jack didn't know how to answer. "That guy in the truck, is that your dad?"

Jack remembered he had his Ma's bad tooth inside his mouth. He took it out and held it.

"What's that, Jack?"

"A bit of Ma." Jack said. Officer Parker reached for it but he held it tighter.

"It's okay, buddy, it's okay." Officer Parker said. "Thank you, Jack, that's good. Let's drive around, see if he finds anything familiar."

Jack looked up and in a blink of an eye, they were moving. He looked out the window and saw things moving just like in the back of the truck. Things like trees, houses, everything.

"Jack, is there anything you recognize, buddy?" Officer Parker asked.

Jack didn't say anything. He didn't recognize anything.

"Jack, this room. What's outside the room?" Officer Parker said.

"The space. No, the world." Jack said.

"You think the kid's on something?" the driver said.

"Okay, when you step out the door-" Officer Parker said.

Jack shook his head no.

"No? You don't?"

"We don't know how to open the door." Jack said.

"My money's on some kind of cult. The tooth, the long hair." The driver said.

"Is there daylight in your room?" Officer Parker asked.

Jack simply nodded.

"Okay, how many windows?"

"Zero."

"Then how does the sun come in?"

"Through Skylight." Jack said.

"Skylight? Excellent, so you live in a house with a skylight?" Officer Parker asked.

"Room's not a house." Jack said. "It's a.." what was the word? Shed! "A shed."

"A shed, Jack? A shed?" Officer Parker asked. Jack nodded.

"That's a needle in a haystack." The driver said. "You'll get more from him after he's had some sleep."

"Give me a second." Officer Parker said. "Okay Jack, what made you jump out of the truck?"

"Ma said in my head." Jack said.

"What exactly did she say?"

"Jump when it slows down, but I couldn't."

"Alright, so what did you do?" Officer Parker looked and sounded anxious.

"The third time I got banged." Jack said.

"Third time of what?"

"Third slow. Everything went sideways and then it stopped and then jumped and.."

"I got it, I got it buddy I got it." Officer Parker said. "54-09 call. Listen carefully we have a rough location. South on Elm. Three stop signs past the junction with Beech. Look for a garden shed with a skylight. Also check the most recent satellite images for a red pickup truck in the driveway."

Jack watched her say everything into a tiny black device.

The car made a noise and it went faster. It was blinking red and blue as it did. He was worried. Would they find Ma?

The car came to a stop in front of a house. Officer Parker opened the door.

"Stay with him." she told the driver.

"Everything's gonna be okay, Jack." the driver said.

Jack knelt on the seat and looked out the window. There was people everywhere but he didn't see Ma. He started to cry.

"Ma." he called. "Ma."

"Everything will be okay, buddy." the driver said again.

"Ma!" Jack spotted her.

Ma was desperate, she was covered with a blanket and she was running towards the cars.

"Ma, I'm in this one!" Jack yelled.

Ma spotted him and opened the door. He jumped into her arms, both crying as he did.

Jack noticed they were inside the blinking car again and he pulled apart.

"Ma, can we go to bed?" he asked.

"Yeah, we can." Ma said, face wet with tears. "They'll take us somewhere to sleep, soon."

"No, but Bed in Room." Jack said, looking at her. She just held him tighter.


	5. The World

**Chapter 5 - The World**

It was a mess of police men and doctors. Beca and Jack were taken to the hospital to be taken care of. Mostly Jack. Beca was worried, he'd never had any shots, he was vulnerable to any infection they might get. That's why they were placed at the highest room, away from everyone.

"We have to run the rape kit." Doctor Mittal said to Beca.

"No, not right now, where would Jack stay?" Beca asked.

"He could be placed with the nurses."

"He's almost asleep though."

"The longer we wait, the more evidences are lost."

"I don't want to be away from Jack." Beca said.

"He could be placed outside the room, how's that?" Doctor Mittal said.

"Okay." Beca said finally.

"Good." Doctor Matal said. "Come on."

Beca was taken to another room, where she put Jack on a chair and explained he would be there while Ma did an exam.

It took longer than Beca expected and she felt humiliated but she knew it was necessary. After they were done they were taken to their suite, where they proceeded to fall asleep.

oO0Oo

Jack woke up the next day and it was all too bright. He sat up and looked down at the sheets. He saw a stain and gasped. He'd peed himself in his sleep. He hadn't done that in a long time.

He slowly put his foot down on the ground, before walking over to the big window. He looked down and sW cars and people and he ran back to bed.

"Ma! Ma!" He called.

Beca gasped and slowed her heart rate.

"Morning." She said to him.

"Are we in a different planet?" He asked.

"Nope. Same one just a different spot." Beca smiled. "This one is a bedroom in a hospital."

"Are we sick for real or pretend?" Jack asked.

"We're not sick, we're the opposite of sick." Beca said with a smile.

"How long are we staying?" Jack asked.

"Not long. Grandma saw us last night and she's gonna get us once they say we're okay." Beca said.

"And grandpa?"

"He was away for work but he's on a plane coming home." Beca said.

"I wetted the bed before, I'm sorry." Jack said.

"Yeah?"

"It was by accident." Jack said.

Something made a noise and Jack gasped. He saw his ma grab a telephone and put it to her ear.

"Hello?" She said. "Yeah, just now.. That'd be great, can you bring it in 20 minutes? Thanks."

Beca got up and stretched.

"Come on Jack." She took him to another room with a toilet and a glass box.

Beca took his underwear off and threw it out.

"Ma, that's waste." Jack said.

"We'll get you new ones." Beca said.

"For Sunday Treat?" Jack asked.

"There will be so many treats and not just on Sundays." Beca said with a smile before kissing Jack's cheek.

"Ma where's the bath?" Jack asked.

"There's a shower, it's splashier." Beca said.

Beca knelt down in front of the mirror and hugged Jack as they both stared at themselves for the first time.

"Jack come here. See that? That's us." Beca said.

"Ma will he find us?" Jack asked.

Beca turned to look at him and held his face.

"No, he will never find us." she promised before getting up and turning the shower on. "Come on."

Beca went under the water as Jack stayed away from it. He just stared at her.

"Bath before bed, that's the rule!" Jack said.

"There are no rules, Jack. We can do what we like!" Beca said before she moaned in appreciation of the shower.

"Are you hurting?" Jack asked.

"Nope." Beca said. "You wanna come in?"

Jack shook his head no. Beca threw water on him and he laughed, eventually deciding to join her.

Both put on bath robes as they got out of the shower and went back to their room. Beca was sitting on the armchair by the window.

There was a knock on the door.

"Ma, the door's ticking." Jack said.

A doctor walked in, Beca sat next to her son, who hid under her arm.

"Hey, it's okay." Beca said to Jack.

"So we're all awake now?" the doctor said.

"Yeah." Beca said. "It's okay, Jack."

"Hi Jack, how you doing?" the doctor spoke to Jack, who looked at him for a second before he looked back down and hid under his mother's arm. "My name is Doctor Mittal. You were asleep when I showed up this morning. You hungry?"

The doctor was still looking at him.

"You want some breakfast?" Beca asked Jack.

"Yeah, you must be starving." Dr. Mittal said.

"He'll bring you some breakfast." Beca said to Jack.

Dr. Mittal rolled a table to the bed they were sitting on.

"Check out what we got; some pancakes and fruit." Dr. Mittal said.

"Let's check it out." Beca said and uncovered the pancakes. "Hmmm pancakes. Looks really good. Really, really good. Wanna try? Comes with syrup too? Wanna try syrup, it tastes very sweet."

"Everything looks good." Dr. Mittal said. "So, I brought you some goodies."

Beca cut the pancakes for Jack while she paid attention to the doctor.

"Sunglasses." he said, handing the cases. "That'll make you feel more comfortable if you need to go outside. Sunscreen, that's for him, mainly. That's important, that's for Jack." he handed her a mask.

"Is that really necessary?" Beca asked.

"Oh, there's a lot of germs in the air he still needs to get used to." Dr. Mittal said. "And my colleague prescribed this for your pain on your wrist until they can set you up for surgery. And that's to help you sleep, just take it if necessary."

He handed her two bottles of medication which she put in her pocket and helped Jack eat the pancakes, which he was reluctant to.

"Thank you." she said. "Come on, Jack."

"So have you had a chance to think about what he discussed this morning?" Dr. Mittal said.

"Yeah I did think about it. Thank you, but I really just wanna go home." Beca said.

Dr. Mittal nodded.

"Okay. You know my view." he said. "After everything you two experienced and to access Jack properly-"

"But nothing happened to Jack." Beca was quick to interrupt.

"Oh no, I understand." Dr. Mittal said.

"He's gonna be okay, right?" Beca asked.

"The most important thing you did was get him out while he's still plastic." Dr. Mittal said.

Jack leaned in to his mother's ear.

"I'm not plastic." he said.

Dr. Mittal knelt down before Jack again.

"What's that Jack?" he asked.

"He says he's not plastic, he's real." Beca said with a smile.

"You got me there, Jack. You're real and you're very brave." Dr. Mittal said to Jack.

Beca heard familiar voices in the hallway and got up despite her son clinging to her for dear life. He stayed on the bed and crawled into a ball.

"Let's talk about this later." Dr. Mittal said.

"Mom?" Beca called, tears starting to fill her eyes.

Her parents came in, both looking distressed. Beca hugged her father first and her mother regained her breath.

"I'm sorry, we just couldn't wait any longer." Beca's mom, Jill, said, already crying.

"It's okay, don't worry about it." Dr. Mittal said.

"Hello Jack." Jill said, looking at her grandson. "Thanks for saving our little girl."

Jack watched as his mother cried hugging these two people. He didn't know who they were but they must've been important.


End file.
